A national push for pregnant woman to get the flu shot this season has been strongly backed by the Australasian obstetricians’ college.
This year’s flu immunisation campaign was launched last month and the vaccine is free to high risk New Zealanders – including pregnant women, people aged 65 and over, and anyone with ongoing health conditions – until July 31.
Nikki Turner, spokesperson for the National Influenza Specialist Group (NISG), said pregnant woman were offered free immunisation as it was shown they were particularly susceptible to more severe outcomes from the flu.
Since the last ‘flu season, this move has been endorsed by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, who put out a policy statement in November 2011 stating that influenza vaccination should be routine in pregnancy.
The statement says the safety of ‘flu vaccination was “well established” with the benefit to both mother and baby proven with research estimating only five pregnant need to be vaccinated women to prevent one case of serious maternal or infant respiratory illness.
It went on to say that increased risk of flu to pregnant woman, compared to non-pregnant woman of the same age, was first noted as long ago as the 1918 flu epidemic, but the 2009 swine flu pandemic drew attention to the issue once again.
Turner said research in New Zealand and Australia following the 2009 swine flu/H1N1 pandemic found that pregnant women were seven times more likely to be admitted to intensive care with severe influenza than non-pregnant women.
In 2012, the three strains covered by the ‘flu vaccine include the H1N1 2009 (swine ‘flu) virus, which is expected to be still in circulation along with two other ‘flu strains.
Turner said most years the strains covered by the seasonal influenza vaccine changed because influenza viruses evolve unpredictably, but in 2012, the strains remained the same. However, people who were vaccinated last year are advised to be vaccinated again this year, “Because the immunity offered by current vaccines lessens over time, so a further vaccination is likely to offer better protection for the 2012 season.”
NISG also recommends people get immunised as soon as possible as it can take up to two weeks to develop immunity after vaccination.
